Seventy ways to wear the Reflet

published 19 May 2017

There's more to the esteemed French jewellers which line Paris's chic Place Vendome than sparkle and precious stones. Each has a horological icon contained within their collections: Van Cleef & Arpels' Pierre Arpels, Cartier's Tank, Chaumet's Dandy. For Boucheron, it's the Reflet, an enduring design that this year celebrates its 70th anniversary.

Introduced in 1947, the Reflet retains many of the hallmarks of the Art Deco era with a nod to the clean, architectural aesthetic of the mid-century modern period. It was the vision of the young Louis Boucheron, whose taste for the simple and structural comes through in the angular lines and rectangular (yet still slightly curved) case, emphasised by the light-reflecting gadroons that run its length, a decorative motif that can be found across many of the brand's creations.

The main innovation, however, is not in the watch itself, but the strap. The patented invisible clasp – comprising tubes on each side of the case into which the ends of the strap could slide – enable the wearer to do away with bulky buckles altogether, elegantly extending the silhouette of the timepiece. Of course, the added advantage to this is that the straps can be easily interchanged without the use of tools, creating a versatile accessory that can be switched from day to night or to match any outfit.